Gardner Campbell, Computers as Poetry

I have lost count of the number of people who have asked for the media for Gardner Campbell’s wonderful session at UBC last month, “Computers as Poetry.” I just got the results back from the lab today, and while I need another viewing and some thinking time to be able to respond to it at all properly, I don’t want to let my sluggish mind keep you from this:

This isn’t a light talk. But if you block off the time, settle in and give it attention, you will be rewarded with an experience unlike anything else I can think of in this domain.

Gardner followed up his formal address with a deceptively freewheeling facilitated discussion that also has the magic. It’s a shame that the audience contribution is inaudible, but Gardner’s performance here gives a sense of his gifts as a teacher. Video here, audio here.

While I cannot do Gardner’s sessions justice before reviewing them, I can say that his performance and presence in Vancouver has only deepened my already profound affection and admiration for him. If nothing else, I now understand why so many of my favorite people in the education technology space have a background in literature. And I feel like he has also given me a set of keys that open up connections between the person I am now, and the person I was more than a decade ago…

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3 thoughts on “Gardner Campbell, Computers as Poetry”

“And I feel like he has also given me a set of keys that open up connections between the person I am now, and the person I was more than a decade ago…” Wow, beautifully said. I tried to communicate this exact sentiment (in much less eloquent terms) to Gardner after the talk. As I mentioned to him then, giving me the Eliot quote to read at the end “We shall not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time” felt rather uncanny.